


She Wears Short Skirts, I Wear Spiked Cleats

by ruff_ethereal



Category: Big Hero 6 (2014), Descendants (2015), Penn Zero: Part-Time Hero
Genre: Alternate Universe - Middle School, Cheerleader!Evie, Cheerleader!Honey Lemon, Cheerleader!Sashi, Cheerleaders, F/F, F/M, Gen, Soccer Player!GoGo, Soccer Player!Mal, Soccer Player!Penn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-03
Updated: 2015-11-03
Packaged: 2018-04-29 19:39:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,049
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5140085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ruff_ethereal/pseuds/ruff_ethereal
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Forced to join a sport by her mother, Mal ends up trying for the school's soccer team. It turns out to be not that bad, especially when she ends up meeting one very attractive girl trying out for the school's cheerleading team.</p>
            </blockquote>





	She Wears Short Skirts, I Wear Spiked Cleats

**Author's Note:**

  * For [magenta_sunrise](https://archiveofourown.org/users/magenta_sunrise/gifts).



> For an Anonymous that wanted Mal in a soccer uniform and Evie in a cheerleader's outfit. Sorry it's only at the end.

She was gorgeous, not so much a ray of sunshine so much as her own star, radiant and made even more beautiful by that wide smile she wore on her face, a sight that Mal would have happily stared at all day long if it weren't for the soccer ball that suddenly hit her in the face.

Knocked down flat on your back on some freshly manicured grass, the world fuzzy and spinning around while your fellow students rush towards you and stand over you in a circle tends to make one introspective, so Mal thought about what series of decisions had led to this moment.

It had probably started early this morning.

“I can't believe my mom is making me take up a sport,” Mal grumbled as she and her friend Jay stood in the bulletin boards in the main hall, sharing space with dozens of other students eying the advertisements and signing the sheets.

“Hey, you could use the extra help for your future applications to Ivy League—after all, you aren't a member of Mensa, haven't pioneered any groundbreaking new technologies or movements, and haven't skipped any grades.” Jay replied. “That last one's going to be a real deal breaker, you know?” He smiled.

Mal groaned. “Oh just shut up and help me choose what I'm going to waste all of my weekend afternoons on.”

“You know you can just go to art club like you want to,” Jay said.

“And if I do, I'll end up getting chewed out by my mom all year, which believe me is _really_ bad for getting in the creative mood.” Mal replied. “So, Mr. Letterman, what'll it be? Something involving balls, legally beating the ever loving daylights out of each other, or something that'll involve me walking around with hollow blocks for feet the next day?”

“Well, since Women's Football has yet to catch on in this generation which would have been _perfect_ for you—aggressive tendencies, violence, and a need to vent a lot of resentment on something or someone and all—I'd say anything would work out for you, so just pick whichever interests you the most.”

Mal scowled at Jay and gestured to the numerous offerings for female exclusive or coed sports on the board. “Have we not been friends these past twelve years? Or did you assume I'd somehow magically gained a love of sports after my mom told me I'd need to get one or face her nagging?”

Jay shrugged, closed his eyes, and held out his hand. After twirling it about in the air a few times, he stabbed at the board. “Looks like it's soccer team for you, Mal!” He said, smiling.

Mal scowled. “I'm _so_ happy I decided to pull a huge favour from you to get this level of expertise and help.” She spat.

Jay chuckled. “You're welcome, Mal! Now I gotta go head off to the football field; I wanna see how much damage I can do to the dummies before the other guys soften them up!”

“You go do that,” Mal said as she picked up a nearby hanging pencil and signed her name on the sheet.

She looked at her name, back up at the little colourful ad that was to be her new after-school activity for this year, and sighed. “Five days a week, five days a week, five days a week...” She grumbled to herself as she stalked off.

Some time later, a different pair came up to the boards, skipping past the women's sports section and straight over to the men's.

After a moment's hesitation, Carlos picked up the pencil and put his name alongside the numerous other hopefuls who were going to try and make the school's football team. Beside him, Evie looked on with pride.

Carlos turned around and smiled at her. “Here's to hoping I don't get completely destroyed at tryouts later!” He said.

Evie chuckled. “Oh, you know that'll only happen if they can catch you first—and we both know you're going to be the fastest player on that field.”

Carlos nervously looked down at his feet. Evie took the opportunity to wrap her arms around him and pull him in. He yelped and squirmed, she smiled and only held on tighter.

“You're going to do fantastic today, Carlos, I just know it!” Evie said.

“Eves, let me go! People are _staring!”_ Carlos cried, worriedly eying the people pointing and laughing at him as they stood around or passed by.

“Hey, part of manliness is not being afraid to express your emotions!” Evie replied before she let him go. “Besides, the tryouts for all the other sports are going on all week, right?”

Carlos quickly backpedaled away from Evie. “Yeah, they are—but football's the most macho, and that's gonna give me the best chance of becoming more than just the scrawny geek in the school social ladder. Speaking of which, what are _you_ taking on this year?”

Evie looked wistfully over at the other section, where there was a list larger than all the others to accommodate all of the students writing down their names and trying out that day. “I was thinking of trying out for the cheerleading squad, actually.”

Carlos balked. “Seriously? You want to become one of _them?_ ”

Evie turned back to him with a mildly annoyed expression. “Hey, pop culture may have given cheerleading a bad rep, but at it's heart, it's a sport all about discipline, coordination, and teamwork—and do _you_ get tossed up in three stories in the air with no safety equipment or mat in football?” She asked as she arched an eyebrow.

“True, true—but still, they come with the image, you know—vain, shallow, only concerned with how good they look rather than what's up here.” Carlos poked his head a few times.

Evie huffed. “You say that as if there aren't any good cheerleader role models out there.”

“Name one.” Carlos shot back.

“Kim Possible was a cheerleader, and I'm offended that you never thought to mention her.” Evie replied with a smug grin.

Carlos grinned back. “That she was, and I was actually testing to see if _you_ forgot about her.”

“Of course you were...” Evie rolled her eyes before she walked over to the cheerleading squad's sign up sheet, Carlos following after her. She reached out to the pencil hanging nearby, before her hand stopped.

“You know you're going to make it, Eves,” Carlos said. “And if they somehow don't see that you're perfect for the team? Well, we both know you're more than just a pretty face.” He smiled.

Evie smiled too as she grabbed the pencil and wrote her name on the list. “Yeah. I am.”

“Come on, let's actually go try out instead of cheering each other on here.”

Evie chuckled. “I 'm expect ing to see your number out there  while I'm  airborne , alright?”

“You know you will, Eves.” Carlos said, giving Evie a quick hug around her waist before he dashed off in the direction of the football field.

Evie blinked, before she looked at her fast retreating friend and laughed.

* * *

Because of the sheer number of students applying for both the football team and the cheerleading squad, half of the girls tried out over at the side of the soccer field. Conversely, because of the small number of students trying out for the women's soccer team, they shared coaches and drills alongside the boys.

“The girls get to show up the boys, the boys get demoralized and vow to do better, we _still_ get beaten, but at least this time, the scores are closer.” Penn explained, one of the members of the men's soccer team, temporarily loaned off to tryouts for lack of female hopefuls to round out the numbers.

Mal chuckled. “Sounds about right. The coaches trying to make the sport co-ed, then?”

“Oh, you have _no_ idea.” Penn said as he picked up a ball and walked off to a clear spot of the field with it. “When the best among the boys is the third best among the girls, you know something's gotta change. Lonnie's only co-captain because of a technicality, but we all know who _really_ calls the shots out there on the field.” He said as he set the ball down near another girl trying out.

“Alright, I've got to go supervise and set up all the other boys and girls, so GoGo, this is Mal, Mal, this is GoGo, you two practice kicking the ball back and forth to each other, passing, stealing, or goalie practice, whichever floats your boat.” Penn said as he backpedaled and made his way back to the waiting students on the sides.

“Got it.” Mal said, while GoGo just grunted. The two of them gave each other quiet, acknowledging nods before they started kicking the ball between them. “So, why soccer team?” Mal asked.

“No cycling or triathlon club,” GoGo replied. “I needed something that'd keep my legs in shape.”

Mal paused for a moment and looked at them. She whistled. “Call me impressed.”

GoGo smirked. “Thanks. I can kick pretty hard with these.” She said as she kicked the ball back.

Mal put her foot on it and stopped it. “Really now? Want to show me?” She smiled.

GoGo smiled back. “Thought you'd never ask.”

The two of them went off to warn the others nearby about the ensuing “goalie” practice.

Meanwhile, in the locker rooms, girls of every shape and size went through their last minute preparations, from fixing their hair and their appearances before practicing their best smiles, to putting on make-up and other products to improve their looks or their performance, or going through meditation rituals or seeking others opinions and support.

It was all a huge rush of activity and noise, and frankly, just looking at it was dizzying, let alone the smells some of the beauty products,  deodorants, and  incense  sticks the girls were using , which is how Evie found herself sitting down on a free bench beside two other  girls, ones she noted didn't exactly look like the usual type you'd see trying out for cheerleading squad.

F or one thing, the y both wore glasses—the taller girl's was huge with pink rims, the shorter girl's was frameless, sharp, and sleek.

Evie  smiled at the two of them. “You guys finished prep ping for tryouts?”

“Yep!” The taller of them replied. “I believe the best thing to do right now is to relax, visualize your victory, and remind yourself about how awesome it's going to be when they call you name and say you're on the team! Besides, with my make-up regime, fifteen minutes is _way_ too short.” She chuckled.

“I'm only here because they banned me from every single contact sport in this school,” the shorter beside her replied. “Not my fault the other guys can't take a hit...” She grumbled.

“So why cheerleading, if you don't mind me asking?” Evie asked.

“It's not a sport to me unless blood, bruises, and broken bones are involved.” She replied darkly.

Evie paused. The tall er girl  extended her hand, her arm reaching well over the short er girl between her and Evie. “I'm Honey Lemon! You would be?”

“Evie.” Evie replied as she shook her hand.

“Sashi.” The shorter girl said. “And before you make up any stupid nicknames or contractions, please know that I will not hesitate to hurt you if you say that while I'm in hearing range.”

Their coach stood at the door and blew her whistle, all activity in the locker room staggered to a stop. “Alright, ladies, that's enough prep work, time to get out there and show off what you've got!”

Many of the girls panicked. Others still tried to rush through the ends of their preparations, while others tried to squeeze in an extra minute of meditation or trying to calm themselves down.

Sashi looked at the activity around her, shook her head, and got up. “Can you believe these girls?” She said as she walked over to the door.

“To be fair, cheerleading's a pretty demanding sport.” Honey Lemon said as she fell in line beside her. “Plus, just the uniform is a pretty big deal. I actually tried making my own, but there's just too many legal hassles; easier to just try for the team.”

“The perks aren't half-bad, either.” Evie said as she completed their new trio.

They stood at the door, just at the line between the locker rooms and the field, bright mid-afternoon sun beaming on them.

“So which of us three are going first?” Sashi asked after they all stopped there.

“Aw, geeze, you mind if either of you go first? I'm suddenly feeling _super_ self-conscious about being the first girl out _and_ the tallest...” Honey Lemon said.

Sashi sighed. “Brace yourselves for tall, venti, grande jokes…” She grumbled as she took a step forward.

Evie put a hand on her shoulder. “Don't, I'll go first.”

Sashi stepped back. “Be my guest.”

“And remember to smile!” Honey Lemon said as gave Evie one of the brightest, sunniest grins she'd ever seen.

Evie chuckled and did. With a deep breath to calm her nerves, she stepped out to the field.

As that scene in the locker room played out, Mal and GoGo were sending the ball rocketing at each other at ludicrous speeds, whoever wasn't kicking forced to catch it or suffer a painful hit, or worse, suffer humiliation as it went sailing past them.

It was an intense exercise, one that was making many exhausted just by watching, but the two of them were only getting started.

Mal put the ball back down on the ground and grinned at GoGo. “You know, I wasn't really expecting to have this much fun!” She said as she wiped off the sweat pouring down her brow.

GoGo smirked. “Less talk, more kicking.” She said as she dropped into a ready position once more.

Mal paused and thought. GoGo had already proven that she could dive like the best of them, and she was no slouch at catching balls sent directly at her; there had to be a weak spot in her defense somewhere, but the only question was, where…?

Penn just happened to pass them by. Mal noticed the way that his shock of curly red hair made him stand out, probably in any crowd except a tall redhead convention.

Then, inspiration struck.

Mal smirked. “Hey, GoGo, catch this!” She kicked the ball as high as she could.

It didn't sail straight up or at such a sharp angle it would have been impossible to catch; but it was still higher than GoGo had expected it to fly, she didn't jump soon enough, and she just couldn't reach high enough to catch the ball as it bounced off her finger tips and went off on its merry way.

GoGo turned to look at the missed ball, before turning back to glare daggers at Mal. She was unfazed and just grinned at her. “Tell you what: how about _you_ try to get one past me this time?” She asked.

“You're on.” GoGo growled.

They got their ball back and  returned to their positions, GoGo pausing to think and look at Mal as she prepared herself to catch the ball this time. She looked up at the smug look on her face, and inspiration struck.

After a short windup, GoGo sent the ball rocketing straight towards Mal's face.

Mal reacted quickly, ready to catch the shot, when just before she did, Evie stepped out onto the field.

For but a split second, Mal's attention was wrenched from the ball.

WHAM!

* * *

All activity on the field stopped with just how hard Mal had hit the ground.

GoGo blinked, the surprise quickly turning to concern as she knelt over her. “Mal. Mal! You okay?”

Mal groaned. “Let's see: I've just been hit in the face with a soccer ball I'm pretty sure you had sent at me at mach one, I'm pretty sure you were _this_ close to breaking my nose, and I'm lying flat on my back on this nice, hard ground while everything's spinning.

“I'd say I'm just peachy, thanks!”

“Can you stand up?” GoGo asked as she held her hand out.

“Let's find out.” Mal said.

She stood back up easily, though GoGo had to hold her steady when she started staggering about. “Sorry about that,” GoGo said, “shouldn't have aimed for your face.”

“It's fine,” Mal replied, “I just got dis… trac… ted...”

GoGo looked at her curiously, before looking at the direction she was staring at. Upon seeing the trio of girls in shirts in the school's colours, short shorts, and spandex, she immediately understood.

“Holy nutballs, are you okay?” Evie asked.

“That was one heck of a fall!” Honey Lemon added.

Sashi huffed. “Far from the worst ones out there, trust me. She'll probably be dazed and sore, but she'll live.”

It was a very good description of the state Mal found herself in, sans the panicking and the mental meltdown she was currently having at seeing the goddess from the locker rooms up close.

It wasn't a trick of the light or the sun, she quickly found out, as she was just as radiant as before, with chocolate brown skin, beautiful cocoa eyes to complement that, and long, luxurious blue hair that was currently tied up in a single braid for the tryouts—oh, how she desperately wanted to see it let loose and luxurious. Then there was her figure, obviously someone who was born with great genetics, and a strong desire to keep those good looks looking their absolute best at all times, and obviously didn't slack off with the exercise to make that body toned and just the right level of muscular.

And to make matters worse, she was looking directly at Mal and she could probably, easily tell that she was most definitely staring at her, and no matter how hard she tried, she really, really, _really_ couldn't look away.

Penn came running up with a first aid kit in tow, deflecting attention away from Mal for the moment. “Woah, okay, back up, everyone, give her some space! You okay there, Mal?”

Mal turned to Penn and focused very hard on him. “Yeah, I'm good, just got hit in the face with a soccer ball going at mach one, nothing big.”

Penn nodded. “Right. I'm still benching you for a minute or two just to be sure. Can any of you escort her there? Coach needs me back two seconds ago to drill the newbies.” He said as he thumbed behind him.

“I got her.” GoGo said.

“Tomago!” One of students supervising the drills called out. “Get over here!”

“Or not.” She said.

Penn turned to the others. “Ladies?”

One of the cheerleading coaches blew their whistle. “Already, gals, form up! Time for a roll call before we see if you've got what it takes to be on the squad!”

Sashi quickly turned around and left to join the others. Honey Lemon shot an apologetic look and thumbed to the fast gathering lines of cheerleader hopefuls and was about to apologize.

“I'll help her.” Evie said.

Mal's eyes widened in panic. “No, seriously, I think I'll be fine, the benches aren't that far away, anyway, I can make it.”

“Well better to be sure about it, right?” Evie asked, smiling.

“In either case, you two better hurry it up, tryouts are about to hit its full swing.” Penn said before he quickly rushed back to the drills and lines with the soccer teams.

Honey Lemon waved goodbye to Evie before running off to the other girls, leaving Mal and Evie alone together on a little free spot on the field.

“Shall we?” Evie said, holding out her arm and gesturing her head at the nearby benches.

Mal blushed. “Uh, sure, let's.” She said, before she started walking away without taking Evie's hand or letting it wrap around her waist or shoulders, while keeping her head resolutely staring forward at the benches.

Evie didn't comment and just fell in step with her. “So, you mind if I ask why you're trying out for soccer team?”

“My mom's forcing me to take a sport this year,” Mal grumbled. “On the bright side, I might get a free pass out of here if my face turns out to be a certified ball magnet.”

Evie chuckled. “I hope it's not—I'd hate for your face to get rearranged.”

Mal decided to wonder what she meant by that later—much, much, _much_ later. “So, why are _you_ trying out for cheerleading squad?”

Evie blushed. “You could say it's always been a dream of mine; cheerleaders are so _mythical,_ you know? They're like on a whole other level on the field and off of it, and when they perform their stunts, they're dazzling, and when they're just walking around their uniforms, they're just… I don't know, really beautiful and confident.

“I guess I want to be that girl.”

Mal stopped and stared at Evie. “You're kidding, right?”

Evie frowned uneasily at her. “What makes you say that?”

Mal gestured at her. “Uh, looking the way you are right now even _before_ you get that uniform, you look pretty damn beautiful and confident to me.”

Evie blinked, blushed, then smiled. “Thanks.”

Mal blinked, wondered where in the world that had come from, before turning red and suddenly finding her shirt much too tight around her neck and words to suddenly be extremely difficult. “You're, uh, welcome…” Her eyes flicked around for an excuse. “Oh, hey, look, the benches are right there! I think I can make it on my own now, thanks! You better get back to trying out for the cheer squad than helping out the living ball magnet.” She quietly kicked herself for that line.

Evie smiled. “Yeah, guess I should. My name's Evie, by the way.”

“Mal.” Mal replied, before she quickly staggered off to the benches and plunked herself down facing away from Evie and the rest of the field. She looked stupid but she _really_ didn't want to see what her face looked like or find herself staring at her as she made her way back to the cheerleader side of the soccer field.

Mal looked back to see if she was well out of hearing shot. She was.

“Evie...” She mumbled to herself.

It was nice to say it out loud. Really, really, _really_ nice.

* * *

Tryouts continued without any further shenanigans or major accidents. Both sides quickly focused on what they were actually came there for, and most of them were doing pretty good jobs at it. Mal especially was pretty surprised at how fun soccer was turning out to be—there was something incredibly satisfying about stealing a ball right under from someone's nose, or having the superior footwork when they tried to steal it right back.

And if she managed to accidentally trip someone, seeing them hit the ground was pretty fun to watch even if she did have to hold back her laughter.

She was still pretty grateful for the first break of the day, however. GoGo was already lounging on a bench and tossed Mal a water bottle; she caught it and joined her.

The cheerleader squad tryouts were also having their break at the same time, and by coincidence, Evie, Honey Lemon, and Sashi were all sitting at the benches across the field from theirs. Mal found herself staring at Evie again, and found the post-workout exercise look looked _really_ good on her.

And for a split second, their eyes met.

And even with the distance between them, it was easy to notice how quickly they both looked away.

Mal quickly busied herself with emptying her bottle of water while keeping her eyes at the ground.

“Woman up.” GoGo said.

Mal put her water down and looked at her. “What?”

“Just woman up and ask her out, already,” she explained. “Worst case scenario, she's already with someone, best case scenario, she'll say yes. Either one is better than just sitting.”

Mal admitted she had a point—quietly, and in the privacy of her own mind. “You say that like asking someone out is easy.”

“It's actually the 'getting yourself to ask someone out part' that's hard, the rest is easy.” Penn said as he casually waltzed on over.

Mal eyed him skeptically. “Oh, and you just happen to be a love expert?”

“Not a love expert, but I _have_ asked girls out, and I am a romantic at heart, so I like to think I know what I'm doing.” Penn replied with a smile.

Mal rolled her eyes. “You might need to demonstrate it for her.” GoGo said.

Penn nodded. “Okay then! Watch my water!” He said as he set the bottle down.

Mal's eyes widened. “Hey, you're not asking Evie out, are you? I mean, the one with blue hair?”

“Nah,” Penn replied, “I plan on asking the one with the glasses and the perennial chip on her shoulder.”

Mal turned to look at Sashi. Even at that distance, she could tell that she was _not_ to be messed with, let alone be in the general area of. “Seriously?” She asked as she turned to Penn.

“The look in her eyes says, 'I will kill you.', but I like to think she'll only horribly injure me at the worst.” Penn mused.

Mal and GoGo blankly stared at him.

Penn shrugged. “Attraction to females that can kick our butts is genetic.”

Mal shook her head. “I'm surprised any of you live long enough to reproduce...”

“So is that a yes to the demo?” Penn asked.

GoGo shrugged. “It's your funeral.”

Penn nodded and proceeded to confidently stride off across the field and to the cheerleader's side.

Meanwhile, a different conversation was going on.

“Come on, so what if she says no or she's not into girls?” Honey Lemon asked. “She's not the only cute girl with the punk aesthetic in this school, and there's always a chance she'll change her mind about sexuality later! I know I did.”

Evie frowned, and was about to say “I don't know.” again before Sashi groaned and stopped her.

“Will you two just stop worrying so much about this romance stuff?” Sashi said. “What's it matter, anyway? We're in middle school, the most you're going to get out of it is a lot of awkardness, terrible kissing, and maybe some clumsy kind of groping if you're really adventurous.

“If you ask me, dating right now is nothing but a huge waste of time.”

“And if you ask me, I'd say it's a great learning experience, and can be pretty fun some times.” Penn said as he stepped up. “Hey there! My name's Penn, I'm from the soccer team. You lovely ladies would be…?” He smiled.

Evie chuckled and held out her hand. “Evie.”

Honey Lemon beamed and did the same. “Honey Lemon.”

Sashi groaned and crossed her arms. “Sashi. _Just_ Sashi, or I will hurt you.”

“Got it.” Penn replied as he shook both their hands then stood close to Sashi. “So, Sashi, you doing anything after tryouts?”

Sashi blinked. “What?”

“I'd like to take you out to this mom and pop corner store I know about, get some sodas and some awesome nachos—seriously, they are the _best._ _”_

Sashi frowned uneasily. “You're asking _me_ out?”

Penn laughed. “Yes, I'm asking you out. So, is that a yes or a no?” He smiled.

Sashi paused. “… Those nachos had better be awesome or there will be consequences.” She mumbled.

Penn beamed. “Great! See you back here after tryouts then!” He said before he promptly turned around and left.

Evie and Honey Lemon both watched the whole thing play out with huge grins and barely contained fits of squealing and excited giggles. Sashi glared at them, the effect greatly lessened by the smile she suddenly realized was on her face. The anger in her eyes quickly turned to panic.

“What's wrong with my face…?” She asked as she started worriedly touching herself.

“You're smiling!” Evie replied.

“Probably because you've got a boyfriend now—and a cute one, too, if I do say so as a formerly straight girl!” Honey Lemon added.

Sashi spluttered and turned red. “What? I do not—do I…?” She asked, the smile still on her face and a confused look in her eyes.

“Well, he did just clarify that he was asking you out, and you did say yes—I guess that means you've got a date, at least.” Evie said.

“I've got some stuff in my bag that'll help make you look and smell your best, if you're interested,” Honey Lemon said. “Swear it works on even the worst of sweat smells!”

Sashi turned completely red. “Oh, just go back to trying to hook up the princess and the punk!” She yelled, her smile still not abating.

Back at the soccer team's side, Penn walked back to Mal and GoGo with a smug look on his face. He stopped in front of them, and casually gestured to the cheerleaders across them.

GoGo gave him a thumbs up, Mal sighed and refused to meet his eyes. “Okay, yeah, actually asking out someone is pretty easy, go you.” She said.

Penn beamed. “Thanks! Now, you try!”

The attempt was cut short by whistles and megaphones going off all throughout the field, before tryouts were resumed.

* * *

Things got more intense the second time around—now that the coaches had weeded out those that were flat-out unsuitable for the sports, they were now seeing who had the skill and more importantly the determination to make it to the top, or train to get there. Drills got more intense, routines and practices were judged more critically, and for the second break, everyone found themselves sitting down on the ground or on the benches, sweating, chugging down water, and trying to motivate themselves to keep on pushing until the end.

Finally, the drills were done, the tests had been taken, and now it was time for the coaches and the captains to review the numbers and discuss among themselves who were making the cut and who weren't. Tensions and anxiety ran high, many people discussing among themselves their chances or that of others, but personally, Mal and GoGo just returned to their bench earlier and rested their legs—they had been asked to demonstrate a lot of “proper” kicks, steals, and passes by the coaches.

The huddles between the coaches and the captains broke up, and they all returned with finalized lists on their clipboards. Excited and nervous crowds of students gathered up around them, kept at bay by the actual players while they set up the megaphones.

Mal found herself joining them, though only at the very back of the crush alongside GoGo.

On the cheerleader side, Evie and Honey Lemon silently prayed and wrung their hands, while Sashi quietly planned how she was going to convince the coach that she belonged on the team in case she didn't make it.

Names were called out, one by one. There were whoops of joy, there were bitten fingernails, and after the last of each list was called out, cries of dismay, angry shouting, and quiet sighs of resignation. In spite of herself, Mal found herself pumping her fist in the air when she found she had made it.

GoGo smiled and patted her on the back; from some distance away, Penn gave her a thumbs up; before they switched positions when GoGo's name came up on the list.

Evie and Honey Lemon's names were announced one after the other, and the two quickly stood up and started bouncing about the field holding each other's arms and squealing in excitement. Sashi remained standing, arms crossed, the frown on her face growing deeper and deeper as each new cheerleader wasn't her.

Finally, her name was called out, and she found herself smiling. Evie and Honey Lemon stopped their rejoicing, and let go of one arm each, giving their circle room for a third. With a roll of her eyes, Sashi joined them and started cheering and jumping about with them.

Uniforms were distributed in the locker rooms, the players now free to wear them. Mal found herself feeling pretty confident and proud as she looked at herself in her new soccer uniform. GoGo stayed on the benches quietly stewing, stuck with only the shirt as they didn't mass produce shorts for her figure—short height, but wide at the hips.

Nearby, Evie checked herself out and struck poses in her new cheerleader's uniform, Honey Lemon eagerly taking pictures of her and calling out requests. After some prodding and urging, Sashi reluctantly joined in, a smaller scowl than usual on her face.

None of them commented on the fact that Honey Lemon was still wearing the dress she had reserved if she didn't make it—they didn't mass produce cheerleader uniforms for absurdly tall and extremely thin girls, either.

Sashi bade goodbye and returned to the field where Penn was waiting for her. The other girls quickly shuffled out if they weren't busy testing the limits of the school's supply of hot water, or staying and doing their own photoshoots in their own uniforms.

By coincidence, Mal and Evie managed to pass each other by as they made their way out the door. Both of them stopped to stare at each other, each realizing that the other was suddenly _way_ more attractive now that they had their uniforms own.

“Wow,” Mal said, “you look… even better than you usually do.”

Evie blushed. “Thanks. You're not half bad yourself.”

Honey Lemon quietly coughed. GoGo mumbled, “Woman up.”

“Hey are you--” “So, Evie--”

The two of them stopped. They awkwardly started gesturing for the other to go first, a sight that had Honey Lemon quietly chuckling, and GoGo rolling her eyes.

“You doing anything after practice?” Mal finally asked.

“No. I was actually going to go ask if you wanted to go get a fudge sundae together—you know, the special they have just for couples with the strawberries on top?”

Mal found her mouth watering just thinking about out. “That sounds awesome.” After a brief pause, “I'm paying, by the way.”

Evie laughed. “Sure, so long as I'm the one paying for our next date.”

Mal paused, then found herself grinning. “Deal.”

The two of them stepped out of the locker room together, leaving Honey Lemon and GoGo looking at them with pride and relief respectively. They looked at each other.

“So, they didn't have uniforms in your size too either, huh?” GoGo asked.

“Nope,” Honey Lemon replied. “Good thing I already had the fabric in the school colours—I was planning on making my own uniform, but then they told me I had to actually be on the team to wear it.”

“Aspiring fashion designer, huh?”

Honey Lemon blushed. “Scientist, actually—my real passion is chemistry, but people pick on me less if I mix and match tops and shoes than chemical compounds.”

GoGo's eyes widened. “Seriously? Future engineer here—gonna make the fastest bike in existence.”

Honey Lemon paused, before she grinned as wide as she could go. “You want come over to my house? I brought a lot of fabric in the school's colours, I could probably make you your own custom uniform cheaper than that the school'd charge.”

GoGo smiled back. “Sure.”

“My name's Honey Lemon! Well, not _actually_ my name, but everyone just calls me that.”

“GoGo.”

“Hey, you mind if I take a selfie of us instead of a handshake?” Honey Lemon said as she reached down to her pocket.

GoGo shrugged. “Sure thing.”

Honey Lemon squealed quietly. “Thank you!” She said as she whipped out her phone and snapped a photo of the two of them.

“So why are you on the soccer team instead of the engineering club?” Honey Lemon asked as they left the locker room.

“I work alone, and training helps me concentrate and de-stress.” GoGo replied. “Why aren't you in the science club?”

“Oh, I got banned after I blew up half the chemistry lab back in grade school.”

“Awesome.”


End file.
